Details

Date1839
AuthorBudd
ContributionProposed, in an essay, that typhoid fever was contagious and was spread by contaminated water.
ReferenceCirillo
NotesWilliam Budd did not know the (microbial) nature of the contagion, but based his opinion on first-hand clinical experience and epidemiological reasoning. The essay was made known to others but not formally published. His thesis was further developed in papers published in 1859 and in a monograph published in 1873. It was later shown that, while fecal contamination of drinking water is an important factor in transmission, person-to-person contact and contamination of premises, foods, etc., are often of greater importance. See Cirillo, V.J., J. Hist. Med.55: 363-397, 2000.
CategoryCausation
Pathogen ClassBacteria

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